


Born to Survive

by TheShatteredRose



Series: Cease the Suffering [4]
Category: Etrian Odyssey Series
Genre: Death, Healing, M/M, Short Story, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-09
Updated: 2015-11-12
Packaged: 2018-04-25 12:28:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4960684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheShatteredRose/pseuds/TheShatteredRose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The death of Tobyn’s mentor was a tragic accident. But it was just that – an accident. Only, someone doesn’t believe it was and places all the blame on Tobyn. The need for revenge could lead to dire consequences – for both Tobyn and Jhon!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Pairings: Jhon/Tobyn, Axel/Lynus
> 
> AN: Yep, another short story! This time about Tobyn’s past. A bit of a slow start, but I’m working on something here, I promise. So I hope you’ll enjoy reading anyway.
> 
> Oh, on a slightly different topic, I finally bit the bullet and started playing the story of EO2Untold and let me just say; Fafnir and Flavio are married and no one can convince me otherwise.

Lynus had been working on a theory.

After working countless days and nights at the hospital, he knew how critical it was for the medics and healers to diagnose a patient's injury and illness as quickly as possible. But with so many different possibilities for an ailing body to sort through, working from the most likely to the less likely and then the most severe to the less severe, it took time. And in some circumstances, time was something they couldn't afford. After all, there were so many ways for a person to become injured and ill in the labyrinth.

It was because of that Lynus had decided to expand his research. He had stumbled across a book that was dedicated to the meaning and healing of Chakra points. He had seen the word several times from reading his numerous books on crystals, but hadn't been able to learn much more on the subject. It was only by pure luck he came across a book from the hospital's library.

A quick read of the subject, Lynus realised that he had unknowingly been healing patients through the use of Chakra Wheels. Refresh was an overall useful healing aide, but it involved the entire body - physically, spiritually, mentally, and emotionally. That was quite a lot for one spell.

But if his theory was right, he might be able to complete pin-point healing through the use of the Chakra points. He hoped that he could do was he was calling a 'sweep' over the patient by sorting through the Chakra Points. Each Chakra was connected to body and spirit, so each was connected to certain organs and emotions. Blockages or unbalances were a sign that something was not right within.

However, it was all theory. Nothing more. He hadn't had the courage to actually try it out. What if he was wrong? He could be placing someone's life in further danger.

Closing his book, Lynus lifted his arms over his head and stretched. Lowering his arms, he folded them over his stomach as he turned his head to look at the bed in the corner of the room. Lying on it, with his arms folded behind his head, dressed in casual clothing was Axel. His eyes were closed, he blissfully napping on such a nice day.

It was in these quiet moments that allowed Lynus to muse and reflect, about how far he had come and how lucky he was. Mostly, he thought about how utterly handsome Axel truly was. His messy red-hair suited his bronzed skin well, the muscles from every inch of his body was taut and powerful. Those arms…nothing could harm him whenever he was in those arms.

Those eyes…those lips…

He was pulled from his thoughts when Axel abruptly opened one of his eyes and immediately looked over at him. As a small smile appeared on his lips, Lynus felt a light blush adorn his cheeks. He, however, soon returned the smile.

He got caught looking.

“I thought you were sleeping,” Lynus said as he pushed his chair away from his desk and stood up, walking the short distance to stand by Axel’s bed.

“Hm?” Axel murmured as he reached out to snare Lynus’ wrist in his hand and after a slight tug, pulled him onto the bed next to him. “I have been.”

Lynus hummed lightly as he sunk down onto the bed and positioned himself so that he was half on the bed and half lying against Axel’s strong chest. Axel’s arms immediately wrapped themselves tightly around him, holding him close. Lynus ran a hand up along Axel’s chest, along his collarbone before ghosting his fingertips against Axel’s chin and then his lips, which promptly twitched into a knowing smile.

One of Axel’s hands trailed slowly along Lynus’ spine and along his shoulder blades before entangling his fingers into the orange strands of his hair. Axel’s hand abruptly tightened and pulled Lynus’ face toward his. Lynus parted his lips slightly as his eyes drifted shut. For a moment he felt Axel’s heated breathed against his lips before he quickly closed the distance between them, kissing him.

The kiss was slow and explorative, simply enjoying the feel and sense of one another. It was equally warm and passionate, heated and tender.

The two, however, were pulled apart by a commotion in the lobby at the inn. They shared a brief look before turning their attentions to the door. Lynus could hear the voices of his guildmates, which surprised him as they had only left to investigate a rumour in the labyrinth a few hours ago. Something else must have happened. While he recognised the voices, all of them healthy and clear, there was also concern and confusion.

“Lynus!”

Whenever his name was shouted in such concern, it meant that one of their guildmates was in serious trouble.

Lynus quickly slid off the bed and instinctively reached for his medical bag. Just as he placed it on his shoulder and turned to leave the room, the door swung open to reveal a haggard looking Macerio.

“It’s Tobyn,” Macerio said, getting straight to the point as he all but pulled Lynus out of the room by his arm. “He can’t move. He can barely speak.”

As Lynus was pulled out of his room, he looked down the stairs to see Jhon carrying an unnervingly unresponsive Tobyn in his arms. Tobyn’s long blond hair was draped over Jhon’s arm, his legs and arms just as limp.

Lynus silently absorbed all the information Macerio prattled off to him, quickening his pace as he followed Jhon into his room, watching as he gently placed the unmoving blond-haired survivalist on the bed.

"Encounter with a FOE," Jhon explained hastily, trying hard not to panic in a well-meaning way. "No physical attack, it must have been a spell or curse. Or something."

Unresponsive from an unknown origin. Finding a diagnosis won't be easy.

Nodding his head and placing his bag at the foot of the bed, Lynus focused his attention on Tobyn, the slender survivalist looking unnervingly weak and frail upon the bed. Standing by his side, Lynus took a moment to simply gaze at his friend, noting that there was no strain or discomfort to visibly see. He was tense, yet unmoving. He couldn’t see or sense any physical injuries, not even a possible puncture wound.

The first thing he thought to do was to offer some comfort to Tobyn, who of which had to be utterly terrified from not being able to move. Who wouldn’t be?

Lynus placed his hand on Tobyn’s forehead, pleased to see Tobyn peer up at him with his blue eyes. Although his face was free from any pain or tension, there was fear in his eyes. So, Lynus moved a little closer and gave him a warm, comforting smile.

“Tobyn, I’m here,” Lynus said. “Can you tell me what happened?”

Tobyn swallowed thickly, as if it was difficult for him to do, before replying, “I-I’m not sure.”

“Ok,” Lynus immediately replied as he subconsciously ran his fingers reassuringly through his hair. “It’s all right, I’ll work it out. Don’t worry.”

He kept his hand on Tobyn’s forehead as he ran over possible scenarios in his head. He was feeling a little lost, to be honest.

Lynus chewed on the inside of his mouth as he thought back to his previous research. Should he test his theory now? He had nothing else to go on...

"Tobyn, I'm going to try something," Lynus said as he leaned over the survivalist slightly, still gently touching his forehead with his hand as he spoke directly to him. "It won't hurt, but it might take a moment. Please wait for a bit longer."

Leaning back, Lynus then lifted his hands and held them up over Tobyn's prone form, not touching him. Everyone had remained thankfully quiet as he worked. He then closed his eyes and concentrated on Tobyn's aura. And there were seven distinct pinpoints of light, slowly spinning.

The first was a red light at the base of his spine. The Root. It was earthy and increased his sense of smell, and connected to the Endocrine Gland Adrenal. It was responsible for so many physical symptoms that he had to go through them one by one. He also careful navigated through the emotional symptoms. There were, however, no blockages to find here.

So, he moved onto the next, which was just under the navel. The Sacral. Orange, the symbol of Endocrine Gland Gonads. Nope, nothing here either.

One by one, he waded through the other wheels of light. Yellow, the Solar Plexus Chakra. Green, the Heart Chakra. Blue, the Throat Charka. Indigo, the Third-Eye Chakra. Nothing so far. Maybe his theory was wrong...

It wasn't until he reached the final white light, the Crown Chakra, that he came across the strong tang of something being off centre and unbalanced. There was a slight black spot, giving the indication that he had found the root cause. Searching further, he came to a conclusion.

Tobyn had been struck by a spell of some kind, and it was affecting his Crown Chakra and his nervous systems, causing paralysis in his skeletal muscles. The smooth and cardiac muscles were thankfully untouched. No wonder he wasn't able to move or respond to any stimuli. Pin-pointing this chakra point, linked in with his nervous system, Lynus should be able to use his refresh spell more potently.

He had better inform everyone of what he had learnt before he tried to offer any healing. He needed to prepare Tobyn for the treatment.

Opening his eyes, Lynus managed a small smile to Jhon and glanced over his shoulder to the group of concerned friends just outside the room, giving them all a small nod.

"You have a diagnosis?" Hamza asked him from the front of the group, his left hand idly toying with the sling holding his right arm.

"I believe so," Lynus said as he leaned over Tobyn again, resting his hand on his forehead to gently reassure him. He wanted to speak with Tobyn directly in order to ease his fears and unease.

"Tobyn? I think I may have found out what's wrong. It seems the spell is affecting your nervous system. Now, I may be able to treat you rather effectively, but I need you to relax. I can feel you tensing to try to move your limbs, but I'd rather not have you leap off the bed the moment your nervous system is restored. Do you understand?”

Tobyn swallowed thickly and gave a soft, breathy reply. “S-sure.”

"Ok, good," Lynus said with a small smile. "Now, this shouldn't hurt, but there will be a sudden rush of energy and you may feel a hot flush, but that's a good thing."

Drawing a deep breath, Lynus raised his hands above Tobyn and he closed his eyes. He quickly located the blockage within the seventh chakra. Focusing on Tobyn's nervous system. A precise refresh should be enough.

As soon as the spell tumbled from Lynus's lips, Tobyn arched his back off the bed and he breathed out a loud breath. He then slumped onto the bed, his hand rising up to rest against his forehead as he sighed. "Shit..." he muttered, his reaction startling everyone.

Lynus lowered his hands as Tobyn rolled over onto his side, to the side of the bed that Jhon was standing next to. Immediately, Jhon lowered himself to his knees and placed a hand on Tobyn’s shoulder. The look of utter relief on Jhon’s face was palpable, his smile bright.

Lynus’ own relief was just as strong. His theory seemed to have worked, thankfully.

Jhon grabbed Tobyn’s hand when he made a motion of wanting to sit up. So, Lynus offered his arm, allowing the former paralysed patient to get a grip and heave himself into sitting position.

"Easy," Lynus said with a light smile. “How are you feeling now?”

Tobyn took a moment to consider himself. “I can feel everything,” he said bluntly, utterly relieved.

“Good,” Lynus smiled. “I want you to rest for the remainder of the day, just as a precaution. The paralysis won’t happen again, I promise.”

Knowing better than to argue, Tobyn nodded his head and ran his fingers through his hair.

“Thank you, Lynus,” Jhon was the one to say to him as he kept his hand on Tobyn’s shoulder to comfort the both of them.

Lynus, however, just smiled as he placed his bag upon his shoulder once more. “It’s what I’m here for,” he said. “No matter the type of injury or status effect, I will heal it. So no worrying about what ifs, ok?”

Jhon gave a half chuckle and nodded his head. “That really is reassuring to know.”

“Tobyn, get some rest,” Lynus said as he made his way over to the door. “I’ll check up on the both of you, later.”

"You've encountered this problem before?" Hamza asked him as Lynus stepped out of the room and into the hallway where the others were still gathered, more relaxed and comforted than they were before.

Lynus scratched his cheek as he gave a small smile. "No, first time."

Hamza looked interested in knowing more. "So how were you able to locate the root cause of his symptoms so quickly?"

"I've been working on a theory," Lynus explained. "By using a person's chakra points to pin-point a distinct symptom. As I said, it's a theory, so I haven't been able to put it into words at the moment."

Lynus then turned his attention back the Tobyn on the bed, giving him a sheepish, apologetic smile. “Sorry, Tobyn, I didn’t mean to use you as a test subject.”

“No, it’s fine,” Tobyn said before he flopped down onto the bed.

Lynus smiled softly and closed the door, allowing him some peace.

… … … … …

It was night when Tobyn ventured out of his room, feeling antsy to move abound under his own free will. He was still feeling twitchy, skittish. Lynus reassured him that he won’t be becoming catatonic again any time soon, but he was still somewhat uneasy. Of all the things he had experienced, becoming totally paralysed had to be one of the more terrifying events. Not being able to move, barely able to speak…he wasn’t even sure how long he could continue to breathe.

…He never wanted to experience anything like that again.

Folding his arms around himself, Tobyn began to idly wander around the inn.

Lynus had told him not to think about the little ‘what ifs’, but really, how could he not? What if he had stopped breathing? What if he was alone? What if the others of his party had gotten seriously hurt trying to come to his aid?

That last question haunted him more than any other. If he was alone, then it was his own fault. Only he would pay the consequences. As it should be. Survivalists were loners. They lived alone and preferred working alone. Survivalists should be alone.

But he was a part of a guild. A large guild. Filled with efficient and highly capable explorers. He wasn’t allowed to be alone. Jhon won’t let him.

Still…he wasn’t used to the attention. Although he was surrounded by others, he found it hard to interact with them. They thankfully didn’t push him, force him to become more social like so many others had tried when he was a child.

Tobyn was pulled from his thoughts when he bumped into someone, instantly gaining a squeaky apology.

He was somewhat surprised to find that Magnus was still up and about at this time of night. The blond-haired alchemist looked equally surprised, clutching his adopted kitten, Zanna, tighter against his chest. His surprise, however, soon shifted into concern as he looked at him with his big blue eyes.

“Ah, you’re up,” Magnus said as Zanna began to purr loudly in his arms. “W-we were just wondering how you were.”

Tobyn shifted slightly on his feet in an effort to keep moving and to hide his discomfort. He didn’t like people worrying about him. “I’m fine.”

Magnus lifted Zanna a little higher against his chest, almost as if he wanted to hide behind her. “Ah, ok,” he murmured in response.

“S-sorry for worrying you,” Tobyn murmured as he tried to ignore the light flush appearing on his cheeks.

Magnus perked up slightly before nodding his head in soft relief. “Un,” he said before a look of realisation appeared on his face. “Oh, ah, H-Hamza wanted to have a word with you when you’re ready.”

Tobyn had figured that he would, being his leader and all. “Right, sure. I’ll go see him now.”

“He’s in the tea room,” Magnus said as he readjusted his hold on Zanna and wandered off.

Folding his arms around himself again, Tobyn decided to go and see Hamza, to talk to him about what had happened.

“Ah, Tobyn,” Hamza greeted the second Tobyn stepped into the tea room. The dark-haired war magus was sitting by an open window, a book resting on his lap, his right arm that had been heavily damaged during that ‘incident’ on the second floor resting in a sling.

“How are you feeling?” Hamza asked as he motioned for Tobyn to take a seat in front of him with his left hand.

Tobyn walked into the room and perched himself nervously on the edge of the seat, his arms still wrapped tightly around himself. “Better.”

“You certainly look it,” Hamza said with a nod of his head and a knowing smile. “You do look bothered by something, though,” he added.

“…What would have happened if Lynus wasn’t here?” Tobyn found himself asking.

“Hm…” Hamza hummed as he leaned back in his seat, his left hand unconsciously seeking out to touch his right arm. “Good question. I’ve asked that myself.”

Tobyn glanced over to his arm before quickly looking away. “…His skills are amazing.”

Hamza nodded his head with a knowing smile. “Indeed they are.”

Tobyn unfolded his arms to run his hands down his legs in a fidgeting manner. “Should he continue going into the labyrinth?”

“Hm?”

“If something should happen…” Tobyn started to clarify before trailing off.

“I know what you are alluding to, Tobyn,” Hamza said, thankfully catching on. “I’ve wondered that myself. If something terrible were to happen to him, we’d be lost. All of us, not just Axel.”

“He would be safer outside the labyrinth,” Tobyn said as he risked a quick glance over to the doorway to see if anyone was unintentionally eavesdropping before turning his attention back to Hamza. “But he’s critical inside as well.”

“He wouldn’t allow us to forbid him from entering,” Hamza added with a small smile. “He’d find his own way in, one way or another.”

Tobyn couldn’t argue with that. “…Yeah.”

“We best keep this conversation to ourselves for now.”

“Right.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story is the latest in the series, so yes, it happens after the oneshots in TSC and it will be five chapters long. I probably could make it longer, but I’m working on another project at the moment. Not saying what~

Tobyn had never liked sitting around and doing nothing. Some found it relaxing. He found unnerving and boring. He was used to being busy. He would always spend his days off either going over the maps he was in charge of, or the codexes, constantly checking and rechecking the facts.

His need to keep moving had only increased after what happened to him yesterday. He still didn’t know the name of the FOE that paralysed him, nor did he know how it managed to do so. And that annoyed him.

He needed to know so it wouldn’t happen again. However, if it did…Lynus would be able to heal the paralysis. That was intensely reassuring to know.

Feeling Lynus’ hand on his forehead and hearing his voice as he spoke to him…seeing how calm he looked. There were no words to describe how comforting just having him there was. He was still scared witless by not being able to move, but when Lynus turned up, a sense of peace fell over him. He knew he was in good hands.

No exaggeration.

“Tobyn?”

Lifting his eyes up from the monster codex he was idly gazing at, Tobyn looked over to the doorway of his room to find the object of his thoughts standing there. “Hm?”

“Are you up for a walk?” Lynus asked him with a smile. “I’m going to visit Abigail. I thought that maybe you would like to restock your kit while I’m there.”

Lynus’ request might seem out of the blue, but Tobyn was absolutely sure he had good reason behind it. Perhaps he realised Tobyn’s need to keep busy. He would, after all, as he also had that need to keep moving.

“I guess it wouldn’t hurt,” Tobyn said as he pushed away from the desk and reached for his explorer’s kit that he would always take with him whenever he was in the labyrinth, regardless of reason they were there.

Lynus was undeniably pleased as they headed out of the inn and into the streets of High Lagaard. Lynus spoke idly along the way, asking Tobyn short answered questions. Tobyn had never been much a conversationalist, so was grateful that Lynus wasn’t trying to pull him into deep conversation.

“Hoho, I was hoping I’d bump into you, Tobyn.”

The familiar voice was startling. Tobyn immediately stopped walking and whipped around to face the source of the voice. An elderly man in a slightly hunched back and a walking stick in one hand, the other folded behind his back was walking toward him. His mouth dropped open in surprise and he quickly met with the man half way.

“Grigory?” Tobyn murmured, a look of surprise on his face. “What are you doing here?”

“Well now,” the elderly man huffed and tisked at the same time. “That’s no way to treat the man who raised you.”

“I-I’m sorry,” Tobyn stuttered as an embarrassed blush spread across his cheeks. “I’m just surprised.”

“Oh, relax dear boy,” Grigory said as he removed his hand from behind his back to flap his hand at him. “Still stoic and uptight, I see.”

Tobyn flushed darkly, but didn’t say anything in reply.

Suddenly, he felt a hand gently touch his arm, trying to get his attention. “Um, would you like me to go?”

Quickly remembering that Lynus was there, Tobyn turned around to face him, finding the orange-hair medic looking somewhat uncomfortable, but understanding at the same time. “No, it’s fine,” he said before turning to Grigory, whom of which was looking at Lynus with an expression of interest.

“Grigory, this is Lynus, my teammate,” he introduced before turning his attention to Lynus. “This is Grigory. He, ah, helped raise me after the death of my mentor…”

“Oh,” Lynus breathed as a look of understanding on his face, empathy in his eyes. He, however, smiled warmly as he turned to regard Grigory, offering him a hand to shake. “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Mr Grigory.”

“Pleasure’s all mine,” Grigory returned as he shook Lynus’ hand in a firm grip, before dropping his hand and folding it behind his back again. “From your coat, I take it you’re a medic?”

“Yes,” Lynus smiled politely. “For quite a few years now.”

“Good, good.” Grigory seemed pleased as he turned to regard Tobyn. “You have a medic on your team now, Tobyn. Someone to patch you up.” He then turned back to Lynus, giving him a quick once over parent-type figures would do before humming in thought. “Hm, I say, you’re not that miracle medic I’ve been hearing about, are you?”

The smile on Lynus’ lips suddenly dropped and was replaced with a look of mild embarrassment and confusion. “Um…miracle medic?”

“Yes,” Grigory said, sounding quite adamant that he was right. “The one who can heal just about anyone!”

A flaring blush abruptly appeared on Lynus’ cheeks and he shook his head. “I don’t know about that-”

“Probably,” Tobyn said, cutting him off as he folded his arms over his chest. He then turned his attention back to Grigory, leaving Lynus to his embarrassment. “Will you be in town long?”

“Hm,” Grigory hummed in thought for a moment. “A couple of days. Just meeting up with an old friend.”

“Visiting Julien?” Tobyn stated more than questioned, as he was more than certain to the answer. “I’ll walk you.”

As Tobyn turned to apologise to Lynus, only to find him once again with an expression of understanding on his face. “I’ll let the two of you catch up,” he said with a smile. “See you back at the inn, Tobyn. It was nice meeting you, Mr Grigory.”

“Yes, you too,” Grigory replied as Lynus offered his goodbyes before turning to continue his way. Grigory watched him until he left before turning back to Tobyn, allowing him to walk with him. “What a nice boy.”

“Yeah,” Tobyn replied.

“Good to see you’re making new friends, Tobyn,” Grigory commented idly as they walked. “Keshet would be proud.”

Tobyn bit the inside of his mouth as a sharp pain tugged at his heart. “…Yeah.”

… … … … …

After speaking with Hamza again about what had happened in that ‘event’ that brought about Tobyn’s paralysis, Jhon walked toward the room he shared with the blond-haired survivalist and was only mildly surprised to find it empty. His books and maps were sprawled out upon the desk under the window of the room, giving the indication that he had only stepped out for a moment. If he had planned on being out for a while, he always tidied up his things and put them away neatly.

Survivalists weren’t that fond of messes, after all.

Jhon’s first stop on searching for Tobyn was to visit the tea room, the unofficial room for the Guardians. Inside the room, there is only one occupant and it was Axel. He was sitting in a chair by an open window, focusing his full attention on polishing and sharping his axe.

It was an old axe of his that he had to pull out of storage. His previous axe had been badly damaged during their brief battle against the Wyvern. His very first blow on such a powerful monster resulted in a huge chunk of the axe’s blade breaking on contact. The second blow pretty much broke the blade in half.

The reason why Axel was pulling out his old blade was that he had placed an order with Thompson at his shop for another axe and was waiting for it to be forged for him. If he was needed in the labyrinth before it was ready, he still had a weapon regardless.

“Axel? Do you know where Tobyn snuck off to?” Jhon questioned as he walked into the room.

“Lynus got a hold of him and they’re heading to the weapon shop,” Axel explained as he lifted his gaze from his weapon, idly flicking it in front of him with a few twitches of his wrist.

Jhon nodded his head, pleased to hear that. “Oh, that’s not too bad.”

Axel continued to flex his axe, actually quite nimble with such a heavy weapon. “You know, can’t help but notice that Tobyn is more sullen than usual,” he suddenly remarked.

The comment somewhat surprised Jhon for a moment, but he smiled nonetheless. “Yeah. What happened to him yesterday frightened him.”

“I’m not surprised,” Axel said as he carefully set his axe down, leaning against the wall. “For someone so used to moving about on his own, being suddenly paralysed must have been his worst nightmare.”

“Putting it lightly.” Jhon sighed as he remembered how much Tobyn tossed and turned last night while trying to get some sleep. He hadn’t mentioned it to him, but Tobyn had been greatly unsettled by the entire event. He was going to be even more skittish now.

He had to admit that he, too, was still unnerved by the entire event. Seeing Tobyn lying on the hard ground of the forth stratum, not moving a muscle. Just lying there. The look of fear in his eyes as Jhon picked him up in his arms was something he wasn’t going to get out of his mind anytime soon.

Thank goodness they had Lynus on their guild. He wouldn’t handle seeing Tobyn in that state for any longer than he was.

“I guess it’s also because he’s embarrassed by all the fuss?”

Axel’s comment pulled Jhon from his thoughts and he turned to give Axel a small, thankful smile. Tobyn kept mostly to himself, so it was heartening to him to know that others also noticed little things about him. “Ah, you’ve noticed that as well?”

“He’s a bit like Lynus in a way,” Axel replied with a knowing smile. “Not like being in the centre of attention, not like drawing a fuss.”

Jhon idly nodded his head. “I guess that’s why he’s comfortable around Lynus.”

Axel chuckled lightly as he stood up from his seat and stretched his arms over his head. “That’s just Lynus for you. Born to be a medic.”

As soon as those words past Axel’s lips, the voice of the very medic they were talking about rung through the inn. “I’m back! Axel?”

“In here!” Axel immediately called back. A smile made its way upon his lips as Lynus walked into the tea room, alone. He immediately went over to Axel, allowing the redhead to wrap an arm around his waist and press his lips against his forehead, gaining a smile from the medic. “Hey, welcome back.”

Jhon glanced behind Lynus, watching to see if Tobyn was somewhere nearby, but it seemed that he had returned alone. Tobyn would have to walk past the tea room in order to get to their room.

After Axel and Lynus finished being cute together, as they always were, Jhon directed his attention to Lynus. “I thought Tobyn was with you.”

“Oh, he was,” Lynus replied with a smile on his lips. “But we ran into the man that raised him.”

Jhon’s eyebrows shot up toward his hairline. “Oh, you mean Grigory?”

“Yes, that’s right,” Lynus said as he ran a hand through his hair. “Tobyn’s walking him to his friend’s house.”

“You must mean Julien,” Jhon said as a pleased smile appeared on his lips. “I’ll go pay them a visit, too, then.”

Lynus looked somewhat surprised, but only for a moment. He still had a smile on his lips. “You know Mr Grigory as well?” he asked.

“Yes. He’s friends with the man that raised me after my parents’ deaths.”

Lynus immediately looked shocked as he abruptly turned to give Jhon his full attention. “…Deaths?” he murmured softly.

Jhon winced and gave the medic a sympathetic smile. “Oh? Haven’t I mentioned it? My parents both died on the first floor of the labyrinth when I was a small child.”

“I’m so sorry,” Lynus instantly responded, looking and sounding torn.

 “…It’s all right,” Jhon managed to give him a gentle smile. Before he allowed his thoughts to be consumed of what day so many years ago, he turned his focus back to visiting Julien to meet up with Grigory again. “Excuse me.”

“Hope you have a nice afternoon,” Lynus kindly said as he stepped closer to Axel.

“Thank you, I will.”

… … … … …

It was many hours later that Jhon and Tobyn left their two parental figures to talk and catch up on old times. Jhon was the one who engaged the two older men in most of the conversations, while Tobyn simply nodded his head at the appropriate times and offer a few short words. He didn’t say much. He thankfully didn’t need to.

It was well into the night as they walked through the quiet streets of Lagaard toward the inn.

“Grigory is in good spirits as usual,” Jhon commented lightly as they walked side by side.

“Hm,” Tobyn murmured as he nodded his head.

Always unfazed by his silence, Jhon continued to talk for the both of them. “He and Julien get along so well. It was inevitable, however, that Keshet would come up in conversation.”

Tobyn immediately felt his stomach clench at the mentioning of that name and he looked to the side, at the ground away from Jhon’s sight. “…Right.”

“I see,” Jhon suddenly murmured as he paused in his steps, allowing Tobyn to walk a couple of steps forward before he, too, came to a stop. “You still can’t bring yourself to say his name.”

Tobyn clenched his hands by his sides. His mentor’s name. He couldn’t say it. It…Damn it, it’s been years, but it still hurt like hell. His mentor was the first to actually try to get to know him, to guide him rather than to control him, to help him mould himself into the person he wanted to become, not the person others felt he should be.

He wasn’t worthy to say his name so casually.

“Tobyn.”

Jhon suddenly snared his wrist, pulling him to an abrupt stop. Tobyn's long blond hair was caught in the breeze as he turned to face his companion, a look of confusion on his face. Before he could say anything, Jhon tugged on his wrist and pulled him toward him. Startled by the abrupt movement, Tobyn stumbled and fell against him. A mere moment later, as Tobyn tilted his head back, everything become still, silent.

“You’ve never been alone,” Jhon whispered to him. “You know that.”

He then watched as Jhon lowered his head toward him, to press his lips against his. At first, Tobyn froze, his eyes growing wide. He, however, felt his eyes slowly close as Jhon tightened his hold around him, one arm folded over the small of his back, the other across his shoulders, his hand holding his right shoulder. When Jhon's hand tightened on his shoulder, Tobyn felt himself melt into the embrace.

He shouldn’t be enjoying this. Happiness was fleeting. He…didn’t want to lose Jhon, too…He didn’t want to go through that pain again. Not after becoming so close…

Then again…life was fleeting, too. It was better to enjoy it while it lasted, wasn’t it?


	3. Chapter 3

With some classes, there was usually a sense of kinship. Medics had no problem speaking with other medics, giving tips and telling stories of their healing experiences. Troubadours liked to meet up and bounce ideas for songs off of each other. Hell, ronins would nod their heads to each other should they pass them in the street.

Survivalists, though, tended to keep to themselves. They were renowned for their lone wolf personalities, after all.

So when a fellow survivalist purposely placed themselves between Tobyn and his journey back to the inn, he could only frown. His frown immediately deepened when he recognised the female survivalist before him. Long blonde hair, similar to his, and sharp blue eyes, she wasn’t exactly a welcomed sight.

“You,” she practically hissed at him, her eyes becoming more piercing.

Tobyn returned her gaze easily. “…You.”

She huffed as she folded her arms over her chest. “So you remember me?”

"I remember you," Tobyn replied stoically. “Vaguely.”

He did remember her somewhat. She was Kaesha and she had been a pupil of his mentor’s as well, but not as long as he had. They were about the same age, the both of them tall and slender with long blond hair. People often assume they were twins.

They weren’t.

They weren’t friends either. They were barely acquaintances. They couldn’t even pretend to be civil toward each other. In fact, she had often told him that she despised him. While he had no idea why she hated him so much, he didn’t care enough to learn.

“He's dead because of you,” Kaesha suddenly stated, her words practically dripping with venom.

Tobyn felt a lump of emotion lodge itself in his throat. It was obviously who she was talking about. “And how did you work that out?”

“It's insulting how you are acting,” Kaesha continued with intense loathing. “Walking around without the guilt that you led a man to his death.”

Such vile accusations made Tobyn bristle. His mentor’s death still hurt like hell, the last thing he wanted or needed was to be blamed for it. “I have done no such thing.”

“Tch,” Kaesha spat. “If you hadn't gotten sick that day, Keshet would still be alive.”

Tobyn paused for a moment, his brow furrowing. “...What?”

“God, you are so stupid.” Kaesha continue to regard him with volatile hatred. “You're the reason why Keshet was in the labyrinth. The reason why he wasn't paying close attention to his surroundings. He was gathering medicine ingredients for you.”

That was the first time he had heard anyone mention anything about him getting sick or the search for herbs. He did remember being ill at the time, though. “...No, that can't be right. He was tracking a FOE when it spotted him.”

Kaesha’s eyes narrowed further, more menacing than before. “Keshet would not have been so easily caught off guard.”

That was true…

“Whether that is true or not, is irrelevant.” The man was unfortunately still dead. “What exactly do you want?”

“I want you to pay,” Kaesha stated matter-a-factly.

“Oh, yeah? And you’re the one who’s going to do it?” Tobyn snorted at the thought before purposely striding past her, brushing hastily past her. “Not likely. Later.”

“This isn’t over,” Kaesha murmured as she slipped into the back streets of Lagaard.

Tobyn couldn’t help but feel that she was right. It wasn’t over. Not by a long shot.

What he didn’t know, however, was what she was going to do. And that made him nervous. If he remembered one thing about her, it was that she was creative and liked her ‘retribution’. Regardless if it was warranted or not.

He had better keep an eye open for her.

… … … … …

Several hours after his confrontation with Kaesha, Tobyn was still musing about it. He couldn’t get her accusations out of his head. She couldn’t be right, could she? It wasn’t because of him that…

No, it couldn’t be true. Surely, Grigory would have told him, right?

Still…Kaesha held onto the belief that she was right, that it was his fault that their mentor died. When someone was so certain of themselves, reason held no place. She was going to get revenge against him somehow. He just had to wait and see…and hope that no one else would get involved.

Tobyn was pulled from his thoughts when he felt a hand land on his shoulder. He turned away from the open window he was gazing out of at the inn to look over at Jhon. The blond-haired protector was free from his usual armour, dressed in casual clothing.

“Is there something wrong?” Jhon asked him with genuine concern.

“No, it’s nothing,” Tobyn automatically replied before sighing and turning to look out the window again. “Just…you remember Kaesha, don’t you?”

Jhon thought for a moment. “Fleetingly.”

“She’s back in town, apparently,” Tobyn said as he turned away from the window and folded his arms over his chest. She probably followed Grigory in or something. “We had words.”

“Ah,” Jhon murmured with a look of understanding on his face. “Still as hostile as ever?”

“You could say that.”

He debated about whether or not he should tell Jhon that Kaesha promised revenge against him, but decided against it. Jhon would immediately insist on protecting him from her retribution. Tobyn didn’t want that. He didn’t want Jhon to get hurt because of him.

Tobyn suddenly felt incredibly uneasy. Someone was watching them, from far off in the distance. He wasn't used to that feeling at the inn. The inn was his and his guild's sanctuary. But there was definitely a feeling of unease in the air. The hairs on the back of his neck suddenly stood up on end, his senses becoming even more refined. Something was going to happen.

"What's wrong, Tobyn?" Jhon asked him.

As Tobyn turned his attention to Jhon, there was the distinct sound of a projectile cutting through the air. A split second after that...there was an arrow sticking out the right side of Jhon's chest...

"Jhon!"

Immediately reaching out to the blond, Tobyn was able to catch him before he fell to his knees. There was a look of surprise on Jhon's face, yet there was a distressing sense of...emptiness in his gaze. With his breathing suddenly becoming laboured, Tobyn realised that the arrow came from the bow of a survivalist.

A survivalist who knew poisoner.

Dammit, it was her.

Holding Jhon in his arms, Tobyn looked out the window to see a familiar silhouette standing tall upon a roof top some houses away. Her long blonde hair floated in the wind as she lifted a hand aloft, revealing a bottle. In her other hand, she made a motion with her hand, revealing five fingers twice before showing three.

Tobyn knew immediately what it was and what she wanted. The bottle held the antidote and she was challenging him to a battle on the thirteenth floor of the labyrinth.

She then turned and ran across the rooftops. She knew he would follow her.

Turning his attention back to Jhon, he knew that whenever there was a foreign object had pierced the body, he was supposed to leave it until there was a capable healer around. But the arrow was poisoned and he couldn’t let it stay a moment longer. He had to get it out, to limit the injection of poison.

Gripping the arrow with his hand, Tobyn squeezed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth. He then pulled, hard. Jhon instantly made a noise of pain and blood began to gush from his chest. Grabbing his scarf from around his neck, Tobyn pushed it against the hole in Jhon’s chest.

“I’m so sorry,” Tobyn whispered as Jhon’s strength continued to fade.

With glassy eyes, Jhon parted his lips to say something, but he breathed a gasp instead, his throat closing in. The poison was taking full effect now.

Lowering Jhon to the floor, Tobyn felt tears prick at his eyes, but he blinked them back. With his long blond hair curtaining over his shoulders, he lowered his head and softly pressed his lips against Jhon’s. He lingered there for a moment, breathing a soft apology one last time before he pushed back and leapt to his feet.

Rushing out of the room, Tobyn almost collided with Axel who seemed to be milling about idly. A look of surprise appeared on Axel’s face, but before the redhead could open his mouth to ask what was going on, Tobyn abruptly pushed past him.

“Help Jhon,” was all he said before disappearing into his room, to grab his bow and traveling gear.

“Help Jhon?” he heard Axel repeat before he then heard a loud curse, obviously having popped his head into the room he had vacated quickly. “Tobyn, what the fuck?!”

Tobyn shook his head, mostly to himself, before slinging his gear over his shoulder and rushing out of the room. Again, he almost collided with another, this time Hamza. He made the motion as if he wanted to grab him by the arm and pull him back for an explanation, but with his arm still in a sling, Tobyn was easily able to sidestep him.

“Poisoner arrow,” Tobyn said as he kept moving, not allowing anyone to stop him, to box him in. “There’s an antidote.”

He then spun on his heel and ran outside, toward the labyrinth.

“Tobyn, wait!”

… … … … …

“Why, hello again young man.”

Slightly surprised by the voice that seemed to recognise him; Lynus clutched his shopping against his chest and turned around. He relaxed a moment later when his eyes fell upon the familiar figure of Grigory, the man that looked after Tobyn for a few years before he became an independent survivalist.

“Oh, Mr Grigory?” Lynus greeted as he walked over to the older man, whom of which was sitting comfortably on a park bench with a few wild birds loitering by his feet as he fed them breadcrumbs. “How are we today?”

“Good good. Just feeding the birds,” Grigory replied before he made a motion with his hand for Lynus to take a seat beside him. When Lynus did so, he turned his attention back to the birds he was feeding, the hand gripping his walking stick unexpectedly tightening. “Mind if I ask you something?”

Lynus rested his shopping on his lap. “Yes, of course.”

“Has Tobyn mentioned his mentor to you?”

“Only fleetingly,” Lynus replied, feeling both curious and uneasy. He didn’t want to pry into Tobyn’s past without his permission.

Grigory nodded his head. “Has he mentioned his name?”

“…No, he hasn’t.”

“Ah, no surprise,” Grigory murmured more to himself, then to Lynus.

Lynus became silent as well. Tobyn had never told him his mentor’s name. In fact, he referred to him as such – his mentor. While others might accuse him of being cold and uncaring, Lynus had a theory to the real reason.

Calling someone by their name meant a personal connection. They weren’t just a statistic anymore. They were a person. Tobyn wanted to distance himself from the pain and memories by referring to the man as his mentor. That didn’t mean he thought any less of the man – if he did, he would not be so haunted by his untimely demise. It was just a coping mechanism. A way to detach himself from the trauma.

“He’s name was Keshet,” Grigory unexpectedly continued. “An extraordinary survivalist. How he managed to get ambushed by a FOE during a quick jaunt is still hard for me to get my head around.”

While Tobyn hadn’t gone into much detail about what had happened to his mentor, he never mentioned anything about an ambush. “I thought he was tracking a FOE?”

“Ah, well...not exactly true,” Grigory said in a somewhat sheepish, uneasy manner. “He was simply gathering materials for...”

“For?”

Grigory sighed and lifted his hand to pinch the bridge of his nose. “I've never told Tobyn this as that self-efficient survivalist would blame himself. Keshet was in the labyrinth that day gathering ingredients for medicine. Tobyn...he had a terrible fever.”

“Oh!” Lynus gasped, immediately catching on. “I see...”

Grigory lowered his hand and gave Lynus this somewhat tormented look. “I didn't want to tell him, you see.”

“No, I understand.”

“That boy,” Grigory muttered as he leaned back into the bench and looked up at the blue sky above. “He takes a lot of things to heart, you know? Hates causing trouble for others.”

Lynus nodded his head. That was one of the first things he had noticed about the blond survivalist after first meeting him. When he and Jhon were arguing about who was hurt and who wasn’t in the middle of the street. “Yes, I know.”

“I worry about that boy.” Grigory sounded tired all of a sudden. “At least that protector of his takes his class seriously. Someone needs to make sure he took care of himself.”

“Jhon’s very determined,” Lynus added with a smile.

Grigory continued to prattle on, seemingly wanting to get a few things off his chest. “Keshet had other pupils, you know? No surprise that many of the youngins’ idolised him. Tobyn was his favourite, though. Saw the boy as his son. Took him under his wing when no one else would.”

Lynus felt a frown tug on his lips. “What do you mean?”

“Tobyn was a very sullen, silent child,” Grigory explained. “After being abandoned by his mother, he found it hard to get close to anyone. ‘Why?’ He would ask, ‘when they’ll just leave me as well?’”

Lynus looked down at his lap, his hands gripping at the material of his pants tightly. What a truly sad mind state to be in. To be afraid of connecting with others. But he knew Tobyn didn’t want to be lonely. He may like being alone, but that didn’t mean he wanted to be lonely.

“Keshet’s death hit a few people hard, as you can imagine. One student in particular,” Grigory suddenly huffed, sounding and looking rather annoyed. “Silly girl. She was in love with a man three times her age.”

“In love?”

Grigory gave an irritated wave of his hand. “As I said, stilly girl. Keshet did nothing to encourage her one little bit. In fact, he was rather unnerved by her seeming obsessiveness of him. She had even started following him in the labyrinth. In the shadows, mind you. Some days it was hard enough getting out yourself, never mind trying to chase someone who didn’t want to be caught down and getting them to safety, too.”

Lynus remained silent for a moment, allowing the information to slowly register in his mind. “…Sorry if I’m intruding, but I can’t help but sense some hostility from you toward this young pupil.”

Grigory sighed loudly and suck further into his seat. “I have no proof, but a theory is; she was in the labyrinth at the same time Keshet was when he was killed.”

“…What a terrible burden for a child to bear,” Lynus whispered softly.

“An old man like me shouldn’t show anger toward a child,” Grigory added as he struggled to heave himself into a straighter seating position. “And I’ve never said anything. But the way she acted afterwards, blaming Tobyn for everything…Bah! Such a depressing topic. What’s done is done.”

Lynus nodded his head slowly, sensing that the older man had said what he wanted and needed to say and was done; he didn’t want to dwell on the topic anymore. “That’s true enough, I guess.”

“Lynus!”

Over the bustling sounds of everyday life in Lagaard, the sound of someone calling his name was startling. Lynus instinctively jumped to his feet and clutched his shopping bag tighter to his chest.

“Wha-?” he murmured as he looked around before abruptly turning back to Grigory and bowing his head slightly in apology. “S-sorry, Mr Grigory, it seems like I’m needed at the moment.”

Grigory simply made a shooing motion with his hand. “Off with you.”

Turning on his heel, Lynus headed in the direction he thought he heard his name being yelled at the top of someone’s lungs. Mere moments later, he was almost tackled by a familiar brunette in a forest green coat.

“Lynus!”

“What?” Lynus immediately asked as he took Macerio by the shoulder, looking at him in the face. “What's wrong?”

Panting, as if he had run all over Lagaard looking for him, Macerio drew in a deep breath before blurting out, “Inn. Now. Jhon. Poisoned. Arrow!”

Lynus really didn’t need to know any more than that.

“Let’s hurry.”


	4. Chapter 4

When Lynus got to inn, it was surprisingly chaotic. The entire guild was gathered outside the room that Jhon and Tobyn shared, looking puzzled and completely lost. They were talking hurriedly to each other, their words filled with confusion and disbelief.

Axel was the first to spot him as he walked closer, Macerio right behind him. An expression of relief appeared on his face and he reached out to grasp Lynus by the shoulder the very second he was close enough. Lynus couldn’t help but notice that there was a bit of blood on his shirt.

“I have no idea what’s going on,” he admitted as he led Lynus into the bed room and over to the bed that Jhon was lying on. Hamza was already there. Despite having his right arm in a sling, he was pressing a blood soaked cloth against the right side of Jhon’s chest. His brow was furrowed with concentration, trying to add pressure to stop a bleed, but being cautious as not to injure his lungs or ribs.

Jhon was lying still upon the bed; the only signs of life were his harsh breathing. His skin was pale and sweaty, dark rings already forming under his eyes. His face was creased into an expression of pain and discomfort. He was unconscious, barely reacting to Hamza’s or anyone else’s presence.

Immediately making his way to stand on the other side of the bed, Lynus made no attempt to remove Hamza from his position. Obviously, there was a wound on the right side of his upper chest. The blood, however, was the least of his worries. Was his lung affected? Did he have a collapsed lung?

Silently using his newfound skill of pinpointing an exact diagnosis, Lynus quickly searched through Jhon’s chakra sites and was swift to realise the severity of the situation. Fractured rib, punctured lung and some kind of poison was affecting his breathing.

Macerio had briefly mentioned poison and arrow, so obviously he was talking about the survivalist skill poisoner. There was one person in their guild who could tell him the components of such a poison.

However, that some _one_ was surprisingly missing.

“Where's Tobyn?”

“He just took off,” Axel was the one to answer. “Said something about an antidote.”

Lynus furrowed his brow. The whole thing was becoming more and more confusing. “Antidote? There won’t be enough time, no matter how fast he may be.”

There was something else going on here. Lynus couldn’t help but feel that Tobyn wasn’t after the antidote. It felt like to him that Tobyn knew who Jhon’s attacker was and had given chase in order to keep the perpetrator busy.

Distraction…?

It was just like what had happened the first time they stepped into the third stratum. When they were ambushed by that relentless monster that was protecting its nest. Tobyn had tried to lure it away from them, away from Jhon.

Lynus abruptly shook his head. Whether on purpose or instinct, it didn’t matter. He trusted what Tobyn was trying to do. Now, it was his turn to act.

“Look, I don't know what's really going on here, but I need ingredients to make a potion to aide my healing,” Lynus glanced quickly over to Jhon. “And I need them now.”

“What do you need?” Axel immediately asked.

Lynus pressed his hands together and tapped his chin in thought. “…Mugwort and malachite,” he murmured and turned to the blond-haired alchemist who had been standing silently in the background, clutching Zanna against his chest. “Magnus, I need some ice water, please.”

Magnus automatically stiffened and nodded his head. “Y-yes.”

“Mugwort the second stratum,” Hamza helpfully supplied. “Malachite is found in the fourth.”

“Shen and I will head to the 16th floor straight away,” Axel stated as he shared a quick look with Shen, receiving a nod of acceptance from the usually stoic ronin. “Macerio, Rahas, you two head to the second stratum.”

“Right,” Macerio immediately said as he turned to the dark-skinned dark hunter. “Let’s go, Rahas.”

Rahas nodded his head. “Ready when you are. Let’s stop by the shop to get some warp wires, though.”

“Good idea!”

As the two raced from the inn, Axel turned to their troubadour. “Lirit, you say here to help Lynus and Hamza.”

“Of course!” Lirit replied readily.

“Chi-hung, find Tobyn,” Axel instructed their beast companion. “Watch him.”

A growl of understanding rumbled from deep within Chi-hung throat. With a quick flick of his tail, he pushed himself onto all fours and then bolted from the inn, immediately honing in on Tobyn’s scent.

Lynus drew in a deep breath as Axel and Shen also made a quick exit from the inn and he turned back to Jhon. He had to be honest, their protector was fading fast. However, he wasn’t going to die. There was no chance in hell Lynus was going to allow this poison, this incident to take him.

No one was going to die on his watch.

… … … … …

It took Tobyn a matter of minutes to make his way onto the thirteenth floor. Why Kaesha had chosen this floor as their personal battlefield, he didn’t know. The thick snow and frigid air, not to mention the lakes of solid ice, made it difficult to traverse silently. It was going to slow him down significantly.

However, if he was clever, he could use the ice to his advantage. He knew this floor, better than Kaesha could possibly. The ice would make it easier to put distance between them and he may even be able to lure her down a few pathways that lead to dead ends.

…He had to keep her distracted. And keep her away from the take points, just in case they were needed for the potion.

Clutching his bow tightly in his hand, Tobyn lowered his hat to ensure that none of the falling snow got into his eyes. Keeping close to the natural walls and barriers of the pathways. The snow will leave deep footprints, but if he kept close to the trees and stone pillars, he may be able to prevent leaving any tracks.

“About time you showed up!” a feminine voice shouted.

Tobyn gritted his teeth, but did not physically react. He had anticipated that she would have a slight advantage over him, but that did not mean she had control over the entire challenge. He was trained by the best survivalist Lagaard had ever had, so he wasn’t going to lose!

Having intense knowledge of this floor (mostly thanks to how difficult and utterly annoying it was with all the ice), Tobyn knew which way lead deeper and which pathways led to dead ends. The ice, utterly annoying at first, could be used to his advantage.

He could sense her presence. She was close by. She was stalking him, much like a FOE would. So…he would just have to treat her as one. Move along the lakes of ice, take short cuts. The deeper they moved, the further she was from take points and the stairs.

Move slowly and cautiously. Drag it out for as long as possible.

Slipping silently through a short cut, Tobyn stepped out into a long, narrow hallway with several pathways leading off. This part of the floor had always bothered him, yet there had never been anything for him to find and see.

Crouching low, he studied the snow. This snow beneath his feet felt different. Softer, as if it had recently been disturbed. Had Kaesha tried to cover her tracks in a haphazard way? Or was she trying to trick him?

Or…was there something living under the snow?

A soft rustling of frozen leaves caused Tobyn to tense. He immediately sprung to his feet and darted behind a frozen tree. As soon as his back touched the cold bark, there was a sound of a thin projectile striking the tree. He glanced around the side to see an arrow.

She was really close now…

He needed to keep her busy.

“What are you trying to gain?” Tobyn called out.

“I’m going to make sure that you die the same way he did,” Kaesha’s angry voice seemed to echo around the floor, making it difficult for him to pinpoint her location. “It’s the way it should have been.”

Tobyn greeted his teeth, rising to the mockery. “Do you really think I don’t care for him?” he hissed in return, staying close to the trees and stone pillars that lined the pathways. A lump suddenly appeared in his throat. “…Keshet was like a father to me. He was the only family I had…”

“And yet you got him killed!”

“I never asked him to cure my fever!”

Kaesha made a sound like a disgruntled scoff. “Some survivalist you are. I still have the antidote. Once again you’re going to be the reason someone’s dead.”

She was talking about Jhon…

“Shut up!” Tobyn yelled as he readied an arrow in his bow. “He’s not dead!”

“He will be,” Kaesha insisted. He could almost hear a sense of vile satisfaction in her voice. “There’s no way you can get the antidote in time.”

Tobyn ducked out from behind the tree, rolled across the snow just as an arrow was embedded in the bark where he was just standing. Pushing himself onto his knees, he quickly pulled back on his bow and released an arrow of his own, shooting it through the foliage, in the direction Kaesha’s voice was the loudest.

A moment later, he heard a soft curse and the sound of the rustling of leaves. Whether he had struck her with an arrow, merely grazed her or had missed, he didn’t know, but he had sent her on the move again.

“I’m not stupid,” Tobyn said as he positioned himself behind a stone pillar, automatically resting an arrow in his bow. “I know what you’re up to. I know you don’t have the antidote. Even if you did, you wouldn’t give it to me.”

Tonyn’s grip on his weapon abruptly tightened when he thought about Jhon and his guildmates back in town. They had no idea what was going on. They couldn’t possibly know where he was or what he was doing. But…

Please, let them figure out what was going on. Let Lynus find a way to cure Jhon on his own. Let them all be safe.

“I’m here to stop you from targeting others of my guild,” Tobyn said. “I’m here…as a distraction so that they’ll have the time to create the real antidote.”

“There is no way they could cure the poison I created!” Kaesha suddenly shrilled, seemingly becoming unravelled.

“Of course they will!” Tobyn shouted back, more reassuring himself than to mock her. “They can do anything!”

“No, I’m not going to lose this!” Kaesha suddenly appeared at the end of the long pathway, her bow lined with two bolts aimed directly at him. “I’m not going to lose to you again! You took him away from me!”

Tobyn kept his position behind the pillar as he watched her from the corner of his eye. “What are you talking about? He was never yours to begin with.”

“I loved Keshet more than you ever could!”

“Stop it,” Tobyn growled as he squeezed his eyes shut. “Stop saying his name! What gives you the right to talk so irrationally about him?!”

Tobyn felt his eyes widen when he noticed a silent but sudden disturbance behind her. The snow was frothing up, so the speak. Something was crawling out from under the snow. He didn’t know what, but it was a threat.

“Behind you!” he called out as he scrambled from his hiding spot.

“I’m not falling for that,” Kaesha spat as she pulled back on her bow harder, intent on attacking him and only him.

However, a mere second later, her eyes widen and she spun around when she heard a sharp clicking noise. She then suddenly found herself face to face with a giant crab-like FOE, red and white, with one huge pincer on its left. That clicking noise was being made from its pincers. And it looked irritated.

Kaesha couldn’t move as that large pincer aimed directly for her neck…

He could only watch with wide eyes as blood sprayed dramatically through the air, Kaesha’s limp body falling to the ground in an unnatural heap. Blood stained the snow as her head…

Tobyn felt sick to his stomach as he looked away. A survivalist should never take his gaze off of a FOE, but he couldn’t watch. He couldn’t look at the…carnage. She hated him, he hated her, she attacked the one he cared for most…still, no one deserved that kind of death.

She was so obsessed with getting revenge against him that she forgot her most basic of survivalist training – never lose sense of your surroundings.

W-where did that thing come from? He had never seen it before!

Wait…under the snow. He knew it! When he walked this path earlier he had sensed that there was something abnormal. The snow was softer, most likely due to the crab like monster borrowing itself under the snow to sleep. Their battling and shouting must have awakened it, allowing it to hone in on their location.

Flailing its claws in a kind of victory dance, the FOE suddenly turned its attention onto him. Immediately, Tobyn felt a cold chill race down his spine and he knew that he had to run. But as he turned to slip down another path way, he watched in disbelief as the snow in front of him began to bubble up.

Before he could register that there was yet another FOE, something snared his ankle. In a burst of snow and ice, Tobyn suddenly found himself hanging upside down by his ankle, a red and white pincer holding him high off the ground.

Two FOEs?!

As his hat immediately fell to the ground, his long blond hair dangling beside his arms, a horrifying realisation took his breath away. If that thing tightened its pincers any more he was going to lose his foot!

Tears immediately began pool within his eyes and he mildly wondered if this was what Keshet felt before he, too, lost his life? What of Jhon? Was he all right? Did Lynus and the others get to him in time?

Before the tears could fall from disbelief and grief, there was a sound of an almighty roar and, suddenly, he was falling.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am currently working on the continuation/sequel to "A Learning Experience". I'm concentrating mostly on that at the moment and want to get most of it done before posting the first chapter, so I'll be a bit absent with other stories for a while. I may or may not belt out a oneshot or so every now again, but they'll be purely accidental...

The sharp tightness around Tobyn’s ankle suddenly dissipated and he fell heavily onto the snow. Upon reflex, he sat up to see a familiar white tiger standing on top of the FOE who had snared him. The crab-like FOE was flailing about, snapping its pincers wildly.

Tobyn could barely believe it…Chi-hung?

Jumping from the crab, Chi-hung landed on the snow in front of Tobyn and roared loudly. So loud that the leaves in the trees trembled and fell around them. The two crab-like FOEs looked mildly intimidated by Chi-hung's roar, yet neither was ready to back down either.

Standing up tall, Chi-hung suddenly aimed another roar toward the sky, almost as if he was calling for someone or something. Before Tobyn could register what the white tiger was doing, he was suddenly scooped up out of the snow and carried off in a pair of strong arms...that were familiar.

“Are you hurt?”

Tobyn snapped his head up and found himself looking into a pair of blue eyes. “Jhon?” he whispered before abruptly sitting up straight in his arms and throwing his own arms around Jhon’s neck, hugging him desperately.

He was alive. Oh, thank the heavens!

Tobyn pulled back after a moment and framed his face with his hands. He looked tired and a little pale, but his blue eyes were as bright as ever. “You’re all right?”

“Heh, still a little woozy from the after effects of the poison,” Jhon admitted with a tired grin. “But I am on the mend. Fortunately, Lynus was able to combine medicine and his own healing abilities to cure me. Even now, he’s still healing me.”

Tobyn’s shoulders sagged with relief and he threw his arms around Jhon’s neck again, hugging him. Jhon wasn’t wearing his armour, dressed in thick clothing made for the third stratum. However, he could feel the thick bandages around his chest, mostly padded by his right side.

Tobyn pulled back again and placed his hands on Jhon’s shoulders. “Put me down, you’re still injured.”

“So are you,” Jhon quickly retorted.

“Hey, hurry up and get out of there!”

Quickly realising that they were still in great danger, Tobyn snapped his head up in time to see more familiar figures rush through the snow. Before he could blink, they had parted themselves into two groups, each facing against a FOE.

With both FOEs distracted, Jhon held Tobyn close as he ducked around and hastily put as much distance between them from danger as possible.

“Over here!”

Next to a stone monument was Lynus, Hamza surprisingly with him. Lynus waved them over to a safe spot where there was a thick blanket on the snow, a place where Lynus would be able to take care of the injured in a more comfortable setting.

As soon as they were close enough, Lynus and Hamza helped Tobyn from Jhon’s arms and lowered him onto the blanket, pushing Jhon down next to him. It was only when Lynus reached for his foot, hastily removing the laces and carelessly throwing his boot away that Tobyn realised that he was indeed injured. His ankle was bloodied and bruised from where the FOE had grabbed him.

In a matter of seconds, Lynus was cleaning the wounds and uttering healing spells.

“You two are to stay at the back with us,” Hamza said as he placed a hand on Jhon’s shoulder. “You’re not participating in this battle. Chi-hung will be able to protect us from any wandering monster.”

Jhon nodded his head in acceptance as he wrapped an arm around Tobyn’s shoulders, pulling him to rest against his chest. “Right.”

Tobyn nodded his head before turning his attention to their medic. He suddenly felt a lump of emotion lodge itself in his throat. “Lynus…”

“You have a fractured ankle,” Lynus said as he carefully, but quickly wrapped a thick bandage around his ankle and foot. “You won’t be walking on it for a while.”

“Macerio, Rahas, take out its claws!”

“On it!”

From their position, they could still see the two crab-like FOEs. The others had somehow managed to manoeuvre themselves in such a way that they were no longer sandwiched between the two monsters. They had their backs to them, still engaging in battle. They weren’t going all out against the FOEs as they weren’t entirely sure what they were dealing with.

They were being cautious.

They were being smart.

“Tobyn, any suggestions?” Hamza asked.

Tobyn wasn’t sure he could be of much help. He had never encountered these FOEs before. He didn’t even know what to call them. For the sake of giving them a name, he was going to refer to them as killclaws. After what happened to Kaesha…

Shaking his head, he quickly focused on the task at hand. Since the FOE was buried under the snow, he could only assume that it was weak to elemental attacks.

“Try using electric attacks!”

“Right!” Axel called back as he tightened his grip on his weapon. “Magnus, Shen, Macerio, you heard him.”

Macerio reached into a pocket of his coat and flipped out a couple of specialise bullets, inserting them into his gun with a flick of his wrist. “One thunder shot coming right up.”

Magnus looked unsure as he hadn’t used an electric spell before, yet his hands were clenched and determination. “I-I’ll try.”

Shen pulled himself into a specialised stance, his eyes narrow and fierce. “Ready for a follow up?” he questioned Axel.

Axel flicked his axe effortlessly with one hand. “With everyone working together I’ll be able to strike it at least three times.”

“Want me to sing Shock or Bravery?” Lirit asked from the back of the party.

“Let’s go with Bravery.”

“Right away,” Lirit said with a grin before closing his eyes and singing softly, beautifully, delivering a pulsating beat that will increase the party’s strength and power.

“They’re crabs, so they can only move sideways,” Tobyn offered.

“Want me to use Shackles?” Rahas questioned as he flexed his whip, ready for action.

Axel nodded his head as he focused his attention on the FOEs in front of them. “Go for it.”

“Volt!”

“Thunder shot!”

“Raizuki!”

The air crackled with electric intensity. Gripping his axe in both hands, Axel’s weapon hummed with elemental power. His back was hunched as he tensed his shoulders. Then, digging his heels into the snow, Axel sprinted forward. As Shen used Raizuki and Magnus used Volt against one killclaw, Axel followed them up with two powerful blows, one after the other. He spun on his heel to turn on the final killcrab, lifting his axe high. Macerio let loose one quick thunder shot, causing the FOE to flail from the piercing attack. With it distracted, Axel brought down his axe.

That did it.

With one almighty swing of his axe, Axel defeated the killclaw that had attacked Tobyn.

As the crab crumbled to the ground, alongside the other, everyone became still in anticipation. But it was dead. They both were.

It was safe now.

“Dammit,” Axel suddenly cursed as he relaxed his posture and pulled back his weapon. As he did so, he hoisted it over his shoulder, revealing the blade splintered and shattered. “I broke another axe.”

His comment, for some reason, caused the others of their guild to also relax.

“Hm,” Hamza mused as he pushed himself to his feet. “That battle was over quickly.”

“Knowledge is power, after all,” Lynus replied with a great sense of relief in his voice. He then pushed himself to his feet as well, immediately grabbing his medical bag. “I’ll be right back.”

“Of course,” Hamza said with a small smile. He watched as Lynus jogged through the snow and began his inspection of the others, searching for and healing any injuries they may have sustained in the battle between two FOEs.

Tobyn watched from a distance as those of his guild pull together to allow Lynus to check them over while they look over Axel’s damaged weapon in awe. Tobyn had to admit to himself that he was also in awe of what happened. He had battled alongside every member of his guild, yet he had never been able to sit back and watch them all in action.

It was somewhat humbling.

“Looks like I’m going to have to get an even older axe to work with,” Axel complained, mildly annoyed.

“Thompson should be finished with your new one by now, surely,” Lynus tried to pacify.

“It seems like you’re getting too strong for your old axes,” Shen commented idly as he folded his arms over his chest.

Magnus fidgeted against the cold snow before timidly suggesting, “M-maybe we need to research for stronger axes?”

“Hey, you think Matron knows how to make crab soup?” Macerio suddenly asked as he glanced over to the fried and very much dead killclaws.

Lirit made a motion with his hand that he wasn’t exactly interested to know. “I don’t think I’ll be having any of it.”

Rahas snorted as idly wound up his whip. “Looks like they’re already cooked.”

Chi-hung simply flicked his tail with amusement.

…They were amazing.

“They’re awe-inspiring, aren’t they?” Hamza suddenly asked, pulling Tobyn from his observation.

Tobyn glanced up at Hamza to find the older war magus looking at him with an understanding look, his right arms still carried securely in a sling. However, Tobyn felt a flush of embarrassment and guilt appear on his features and he looked away, subconsciously moving closer to Jhon.

“Let’s head home,” Hamza abruptly stated. “It’s as cold as ever in this stratum.”

… … … … …

Not wanting to risk walking through the third stratum to the nearest geo pole with three impaired people, they had decided to split into groups and use several warp wires to spirit them out of the labyrinth. On the outskirts of town, Jhon had finally succumbed to his fatigue, so Shen and Magnus had to aid him as he walked.

Tobyn, on the other hand, wasn’t allowed to put any pressure on his injured ankle, so Axel effortlessly carried him on his back. Tobyn was, of course, rather embarrassed by the whole thing. The last person who had carried him like that was Keshet, when he was a child…

It still hurt to think about…

As they were heading back to the inn, Macerio and Lirit tried to lug around Axel’s axe to trade it in at the weapon shop, but it was heavy for the both of them. They looked embarrassed and surprised when Chi-hung suddenly grabbed the weapon’s handle in his mouth and trotted off with it, leaving the two to scramble after him.

When they had reached the inn, it was getting quite late, so both Tobyn and Jhon were immediately escorted back to their room. After shepherding them inside, Axel, Shen and Magnus quickly vacated, promising to check up on them later while also knowing that they would want some time alone to catch their breaths.

They sat shoulder to shoulder on Tobyn’s bed as Lynus continued to fuss over the two of them. He was asking health related questions, never prying too deep. In fact, no one demanded answers from him, which made him feel even worse. They had asked him what had happened and who was involved, and he had answered their questions, but they wouldn’t pry any deeper than that. His past, they said, was his business and they were ready to listen whenever he was ready to talk.

They were all so understanding. Was it ok for a loner like him to be around such trusting and understanding people?

“We have asked the guards to retrieve Kaesha’s body,” Lynus explained as he re-checked the bandages that spanned around Tobyn’s ankle.

“Ok,” Tobyn simply replied.

After reassuring the bandages were taut and firm, but not overly restrictive, Lynus stood up and folded his arms over his torso, something, Tobyn had noticed, that he often did when he was falling into caretaker mode.

“How are you feeling now?” Lynus asked him with a gentle look. “Is your ankle bothering you?”

Tobyn shook his head, unable to meet his eyes. “It’s fine.”

“Now, no walking on it for the next few days,” Lynus instructed as he motioned over to the pair of crutches that were resting against the wall next to his bed. They were actually the crutches Jhon had used when he partially dislocated his knee all that time ago. “Use them if needed.”

“I’ll make sure,” Jhon had dutifully responded, nodding his head with a smile.

“That’s good,” Lynus smiled before dropping his hands to his sides and making the motion to leave the room. “Well, then, I’ll leave the two of you alone to recover.”

Tobyn suddenly reached out to grab at his wrist, pulling him to a stop. “Wait,” he said. He wanted, needed, to explain something to him. He felt as though he owed it to him.

A look of surprise appeared on Lynus’ face as he turned to regard him. “What’s wrong?” he immediately asked.

“I knew you could do it,” Tobyn found himself blurting out. “If there was a cure, you would find it.”

“I see,” Lynus said as he smiled warmly, his violet eyes shimmering happiness. He then reached around to place his hand on top of Tobyn’s that was still holding onto his wrist. “So that was the reason you went into the labyrinth alone. We had thought as much.”

Tobyn loosened his grip in shock, but didn’t pull his hand away. He couldn’t. Not with Lynus still holding on. “What?”

“Oh, don’t look surprised,” Lynus chided lightly, his warm smile never faltering. “We trust you, too, you know.”

“E-even so,” Tobyn stuttered as he pulled away his hand and looked off to the side. “Another person died because of me.”

“That’s not true,” Jhon immediately insisted.

“Keshet was in the labyrinth because of me,” Tobyn said in a firm manner as he turned to face the other blond. “If I hadn’t gotten sick, he’d-”

“Tobyn.”

Tobyn was stunned into silence when Lynus suddenly placed his hands on his cheeks, turned him toward him and tiled his head back so that he was looking up at him, straight into his eyes. “H-huh?”

“It’s true,” Lynus said, an expression of sincerity and motherly warmth on his face. “Keshet did enter the labyrinth searching for healing herbs for you. His death, however, wasn’t your fault. You didn’t make him go. You didn’t force him to. He did it on his own. He went because he wanted to help you. Not matter the dangers; he went because he cared for you very much. Just like you did today. You care so much for Jhon that you risked your life for him. You’re not a loner, Tobyn.”

H-he…he wasn’t? B-but survivalists were supposed to be…

Lynus tilted his head to the side slightly and smiled kindly in understanding. “You might see yourself as detached, but detachment doesn’t mean responding to a person or situation in a cold, sterile way. It just means you’re not under the illusion that you can control everything. You’re a critical member of this guild. And a beloved member of this family.”

“H-how…?”

“Mr Grigory told me this,” Lynus explained. “He raised you. He knows you better than you think. He also cares for you. And he’s not the only one. Please, see that for yourself.”

Lynus gently removed his hands from his cheeks and took a step back, his arms once against folding over his torso.

With unblinking eyes, Tobyn lowered his head to look down at the floor. Suddenly, a sob lodged itself in his throat. He tried to smother it with his hand, to push it away. But when Jhon wrapped a warm arm around his shoulders, pulling him against him, Tobyn found himself bursting into tears.

“Jhon…” he whimpered as he curled closer to him.

“Shh, it’s all right,” Jhon soothed as he pulled Tobyn onto his lap, entangling his fingers into his long hair to press his face against his left shoulder. He rested his chin on top of his head as he gently whispered words of reassurance to him.

He couldn’t stop crying. He…couldn’t remember the last time he cried.

“You’re ok,” Jhon whispered to him as he continued to hold him. “Let it all out.”

“I-I’m sorry…” Tobyn sobbed in reply.

“There isn’t any more I can do here,” Lynus said softly, his kindness and warmth never faltering for a moment. “It’s all up to you, Jhon.”

“Lynus,” Jhon said as he turned his head toward Lynus, resting his cheek on top of Tobyn’s head. “Thank you once again.”

“No. It’s what I’m here for,” Lynus said in return. “So long as I am here, no one will be lost. I promise.”

“We know.”

Tobyn pulled his face away from Jhon’s shoulder to look over at Lynus. He wanted to say something to him, but couldn’t find the words. But the look Lynus gave him, a slight tilt of his head and that ever warm smile of his, told him that he didn’t need to say anything.

Quietly, Lynus turned on his heel and made his way out of the room. He opened the door enough for him to slip out before shutting it softly behind him.

Hastily wiping his tears from his eyes, Tobyn remained situated on Jhon’s lap, though he did pull away slightly so that he could look upon his face. “Jhon?”

Wordlessly, Jhon unexpectedly lifted his hand to gently cradle the side Tobyn's face. Tobyn felt his eyes grow heavy as he held a breath. There was that tenderness in Jhon's he still wasn't used to seeing. With his hold still gently upon him, Jhon suddenly pulled Tobyn toward him, bringing his face toward his. In that instant, their lips met.

Tobyn closed his eyes as he leaned into the kissed, his hand snaking up to rest against Jhon’s chest, over the thick padding that was healing his near fatal injury. He felt tears threaten to fall once again as he tightened his hand, grabbing a handful of Jhon’s shirt. Jhon lowered his hand from his face to wrap his arm tightly around him, holding him close and tightly.

He could have lost this…

But he didn’t.

And he wasn’t going to any time soon.


End file.
